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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27548032">Through the Glass Wall</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/SailorChibi/pseuds/SailorChibi'>SailorChibi</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>James Bond (Craig movies)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Age Play, Age Play Caregiver Alec Trevelyan, Age Play Caregiver James Bond, Age Play Daddy Bond, Age Play Little Q (James Bond), Bed-Wetting, Bedsharing, Bond needs to get better at going to Medical, Daddy James Bond, Daddy!James Bond, Diapers, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Infantilism, James Bond Takes Care of Q, Little Headspace, Little Q, Non-Sexual Age Play, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Protective Alec Trevelyan, Protective James Bond, Q (James Bond) needs a hug, Quarantine, Sick Fic, Sick Q (James Bond), alternate universe - littles are known, but it does include quarantine about a potential illness, fanfiction is a break from all that shit, fictional illness, nappies, no worries this story is not about COVID, non-sexual infantilism, overwhelmed Q, sick james bond, thumb sucking, uncle!Alec Trevelyan</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-11-13</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-25</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 03:15:04</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>6</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>12,447</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27548032</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/SailorChibi/pseuds/SailorChibi</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Hiding the fact that you're a Little suddenly becomes a lot harder when you get quarantined in Medical. Thank you, James Bond.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Alec Trevelyan &amp; Q, James Bond &amp; Q, James Bond &amp; Q &amp; Alec Trevelyan</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>30</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>350</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>This fic is not about COVID. The "illness" is a random mystery illness. I just wanted to be upfront with that.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The cup of tea appeared at Q’s elbow as though by magic. Even though it smelled delicious, and was no doubt prepared exactly the way he liked it, Q ignored it for the time being to better focus on what he was trying to do. He typed in a few extra lines of code, mentally crossed his fingers, and then let the script go to work. A small, victorious smile crossed his face when he realized it was working.</p><p>“Good job. Now celebrate by drinking your tea,” a familiar voice murmured in his ear, shortly before the cup of tea was picked up and pressed to Q’s lips. Automatically, Q parted his lips and took a sip of the tea. It wasn’t hot, but nor was it cold: as expected of James Bond, the tea was <i>just</i> the right temperature and had been prepared <i>just</i> the way Q liked it.</p><p>“When did you get back?” Q asked, bringing his hands up to take hold of the cup. He took one more sip, appreciating the way the warmth of the tea coursed through him, before turning his chair around. James leaned back, smiling down at him in that soft way that only Q or Alec ever got to see, and that was yet another source of warmth that Q luxuriated in.</p><p>“Just now,” James said. “Thought I’d stop off and deliver my gun to you in person.” He deposited the remains of what had once been a very expensive, very deadly gun on the desk. Q looked at the bits and pieces for a moment in silence before sighing.</p><p>“Seriously?”</p><p>“Hey, at least I brought something back this time,” James said innocently, though the mischievous sparkle in his eyes gave away his amusement. Q pouted up at him, but as always, his pouts didn’t have nearly the same effect as they did when he was in his Little headspace. James merely grinned at him.</p><p>“You should’ve stopped at Medical. There was no need to rush down here for that,” Q grumbled, picking up one of the pieces. Upon closer inspection, he realized that it had once been the trigger to the gun.</p><p>“I did stop,” James said. “They took all their samples and checked me over.”</p><p>Q shot him a look. “And did Medical say you could leave?”</p><p>“They didn’t <i>not</i> say I could leave,” James replied, which Q found hard to believe. Medical doctors and nurses had seen it all at this point, and they were usually pretty good at making sure they covered all their bases. </p><p>However, this was also James Bond that they were talking about. None of the 00-agents liked Medical, but 006 and 007 were by far the worst. They would do anything to get out of having to go to Medical, even if they were on death’s door. So to hear that James had ducked out of Medical, probably when some poor nurse had their back turned, was not at all a surprise.</p><p>“Bond,” Q chided.</p><p>“What? I’m fine. Not a scratch on me,” James said, spreading his hands and doing a quick spin so that Q could see for himself. “Besides, I hadn’t seen you in two weeks. Alec’s been out on a mission for over a month. I needed to make sure you hadn’t starved to death.”</p><p>Q flushed a bit and pouted again, more sincerely this time. “I’m not that bad.”</p><p>“Q, darling, you once went without eating for five days because you were so caught up in hacking,” James said.</p><p>“That was one time!” Q whined, taking another sip of his tea. </p><p>James favoured him with an indulgent smile and a shake of the head. “It was more than one time, dear Quartermaster, but you can see why I was in a rush to make sure you were still standing. Literally.” He put his hand on top of Q’s head, gently smoothing down the wayward curls.</p><p>The touch was so simple, but it felt nice. <i>Really</i> nice. Q was leaning into it before he could stop himself, like a needy kitten that hadn’t been touched in too long. Usually he desperately missed Alec and James when they were away on missions, but this time he’d been so busy that he’d hardly had the time to think about them. Now that James was back, it was hitting him just how much he had missed them and the life they had together outside of MI6.</p><p>“Do you need a hug?” James asked. Q opened his eyes to find that James was well within his personal space, eyes completely focused on Q’s face like he could figure out what Q was thinking through proximity alone. </p><p>Normally they were very careful about what lines they crossed at work. Only a handful of people knew about Q’s classification and Q intended to keep it that way. So he was cautious about doing anything that might cause him to slip into his headspace when there were other people right now, and that included too much direct contact with either of his caregivers.</p><p>But the door to Q’s office was shut, and no one would bother him since they all would have seen James Bond coming in. James would have made sure of that. Q didn’t feel especially close to his headspace at the moment – it usually took him a little while to unwind when he’d been working as intensely as he had – and so, he thought to himself that surely a hug couldn’t hurt. </p><p>He stood up, arms outstretched, and James immediately stepped forward to pull him into a hug. Q <i>loved</i> that. There was no other time in his life when he had been granted hugs as easily as he was right now; in fact, for too many years, Q had been about as deprived of touch as it was possible for a functioning human to be. But now that he had caregivers, all he had to do was lift his arms up and James and Alec were always right there, ready to grant him the touch that he had always desperately coveted.</p><p>And really, Q might have been a little biased, but he secretly thought that his caregivers gave the best hugs. Their arms were always so strong and made Q feel so secure, like nothing bad could possibly happen while he was with them. He knew that was a little silly, considering what he did for a living and the fact that he knew James and Alec couldn’t protect him from everything, but it was the best feeling in the world.</p><p>“Ah, what a long mission,” James said with a sigh, resting his chin on top of Q’s head. “I’m glad that it’s over.”</p><p>“Did you have any trouble?” Q asked, pressing his nose to James’s neck. There was nothing but the pleasant, familiar scent of James’s favourite cologne, so that meant he must have showered prior to coming to see Q. </p><p>“Hmm, no more so than usual. Just tired, that’s all.”</p><p>Q frowned slightly. It was unusual for James to be willing to admit that he was tired. </p><p>“But I got the intel that M wanted. And I may have had some fun in the process,” James added, and Q didn’t need to look at him to know that he was smirking.</p><p>“Eww,” Q muttered, screwing his face up.</p><p>James chuckled. “I knew you’d respond that way.”</p><p>“Of course I did. I’m a Little,” Q said. He had no interest in sex, and even less interest in being teased. So, even though James was deliciously warm, Q squirmed free of the hug.</p><p>“No more hug?” James asked, and now it was his turn to pout.</p><p>“Nope. You’ve ruined it. Go away,” Q said, though there was no genuine heat in his voice. “I have things to do.” He then made the mistake of turning his back to James Bond.</p><p>Almost immediately, arms wrapped around Q from behind and securely pinned his own arms to his sides. Q whined a bit and struggled half-heartedly, looking longingly at his computer. His script was still running, and he wanted to be close enough to see the results as soon as they happened.</p><p>But James pulled him backwards, walking them both back until they reached the sofa installed in Q’s office. Not by Q’s insistence, of course. The sofa had “mysteriously” appeared one day, and it was now both James’s and Alec’s favourite place to relax when they were at MI6. All of Q’s attempts to get rid of the sofa had been thwarted; he’d even dragged it outside himself one day only for it to reappear the next morning.</p><p>James sat, pulling Q down to into his lap, and chuckled when Q whined. He nuzzled the back of Q’s head and pressed a kiss to Q’s temple. Q tried to get up, but James’s arms were locked around him and he wasn’t strong enough to squirm free this time. </p><p>“Don’t complain, Quartermaster. I know you. When you get fussy, that means you haven’t slept in too long,” James murmured into Q’s ear.</p><p>“I’ll have you know I slept last night,” Q said indignantly.</p><p>“Oh really? And just how long did you sleep for?” James asked knowingly.</p><p>Q scowled in the direction of his computer. “Two hours.”</p><p>“And how long before that had you slept?”</p><p>He actually had to stop and think about that for a moment. Tentatively, Q said, “Three days?”</p><p>“Q! You promised to be better about your sleeping schedule when Alec and I weren’t around,” James said, though he didn’t sound surprised.</p><p>“I was working on something!” Q protested, though truth be told he couldn’t remember exactly what he’d been working on at the time. There had been a mission he’d had to get involved in, and then 002’s gun had started misfiring, and then Moneypenny had needed his help to hack in Russia…</p><p>“You’re always working on something,” James murmured. </p><p>“I do have an important job,” Q said huffily.</p><p>“You’re right, you do. Why don’t you tell me what you were working on?” James said, shifting a bit to get more comfortable.</p><p>Q kept frowning for a few seconds, but the temptation to explain what he’d been doing was too great. “Okay, see, Moneypenny came to me yesterday and said MI6 needed to hack into Russia because –”</p><p>He was a good fifteen minutes into his explanation before he realized that there was a heavy weight resting against his hair. He turned his head slightly and saw that James’s eyes were closed. His breathing had deepened and slowed. He’d fallen asleep.</p><p>“Rude,” Q muttered, though there was no real ire in his voice. James and Alec were often tired following missions, and it usually took them a while to settle down. That James had fallen asleep so quickly, and in MI6 no less, suggested that he was worse off than usual.</p><p>Normally this was the moment when Q would’ve got up and kept working, but James’s hands were still securely looped around his waist. Squirming free would wake James up, which Q was loathe to do.</p><p>Besides, James was very warm, and Q was very comfortable…</p><p>He barely noticed his own eyes slipping shut.</p><p>But he definitely noticed someone pounding on the door to his office.</p><p>Both Q and James came awake with a start.</p><p>“Q! Is 007 in there with you?!”</p><p>“Moneypenny?” Q mumbled, pushing his glasses up so that he could rub at his eyes. He felt even more tired now than before, and foggy, like his brain didn’t want to function. </p><p>“Yes, I’m here,” James said loudly, always the more coherent of the two even after a rude awakening. “What’s going on?”</p><p>“Did you speak to anyone else on your way to Q’s office? Where did you go?” Moneypenny asked.</p><p>James and Q looked at each other blankly.</p><p>“Uh, I don’t think I saw anyone else. I stopped in Medical and took a shower. That’s about it,” James said. He gently moved Q to sitting beside him instead of on him and stood up so that he could step closer to the door. One hand rested on his hip, where Q knew that there had to be a gun. Q desperately wanted to pull his knees up to his chest and curl up into a ball, but he made himself stand up too.</p><p>“Good,” Moneypenny said. </p><p>“What’s going on?” James demanded. </p><p>There was a slight pause, possibly a whispered discussion, before Moneypenny said grimly, “Medical found something. As of right now, both you and Q are under quarantine.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The absolutely poisonous glare that Q turned on James was enough to make James wince and hold his hands up in a placating manner. He mouthed something at Q that Q couldn’t discern, not that it mattered, and turned back to the door.</p><p>“What do you mean, quarantine?” James called through the door.</p><p>“You’re going to be escorted to Medical,” Moneypenny responded. “Hang on.”</p><p>“To Medical? Why?” James asked, sighing when there was no answer. Q watched as he tried the doorknob, but the door was clearly locked. </p><p>“What did you do?” Q hissed at him, crossing his arms over his chest.</p><p>“Nothing! I swear!” James said. </p><p>Q narrowed his eyes. “I will call Alec on you.”</p><p>James sighed. “You know what my mission was, Q. I had to break into a Biomedical Research Facility. I suppose that there might have been a few vials broken on my way out…”</p><p>“Are you kidding me? And then you left Medical and came <i>here</i>?!” Q cried out, fighting the urge to grab his hair and pull out of sheer frustration. James could be the most wonderful, caring attentive caregiver there was. But then there were those moments when he would pull a completely bullshit move like this, just not thinking at all, and it was enough to make Q want to grab him and shake some sense into him.</p><p>He refrained, but only because James had several inches and a good stone or two on him, so it was very likely that Q would be able to move the 00-agent. But god did he want to.</p><p>Instead, he crossed over to his desk and threw himself down. Technically he was not supposed to have access to Medical’s files. They were considered private and highly sensitive. But Q wasn’t the Quartermaster of MI6 for nothing. It only took a few minutes for him to bypass the firewalls and get into James’s file to see what was going on. James hovered over his shoulder the whole time.</p><p>“So?” James asked.</p><p>“It looks like they’re not sure what they found,” Q said, scanning the information quickly. Much of it was written in a highly technical jargon that he didn’t fully understand, but a few lines were enough to send a chill down his spine. They seemed to be very considered about what James might have potentially been exposed to during his mission. Terms like ‘high fever’, ‘fluid in the lungs’, and ‘labored breathing’ leapt off the page.</p><p>“It can’t be that bad,” said James, sounding more like he was trying to convince himself instead of Q.</p><p>“Actually, it could be if it’s something new they don’t know how to handle.” Q turned in his chair, eyeing James. “Are you feeling any different? Cold? Chills? Feverish?”</p><p>James blinked, then shrugged. “Not that I’m aware of. I mean, I’m more tired than usual… but I also just got back from a mission where I didn’t sleep for about three days straight,” he pointed out. “Add in an eighteen-hour flight on top of that and <i>anyone</i> would be tired. You, on the other hand, were cold earlier.”</p><p>Q hadn’t even realized that James had noticed. It was his turn to shrug. “I’m always cold,” he said dismissively, which was actually true. There was a reason that the Quartermaster of MI6 was famed for having a mug of tea seemingly permanently glued to his hand.</p><p>“And you don’t feel any other symptoms? No headache or anything like that?” James persisted.</p><p>“No,” Q said, resolutely ignoring the dull throb of his temples. He told himself that it didn’t mean anything. Much like he was always cold, he often had a headache. That went hand-in-hand with staring at a computer screen or tiny, delicate bits of machinery all day. </p><p>“Okay. Tell me if anything changes,” said James, crossing his arms and leaning against the desk. Q studied him for a moment, realizing that James really did look tireder than usual. His stomach turned over.</p><p>But then, he told himself, even if one or both of them got sick, it didn’t necessarily mean that James had been infected with some biological agent. In spite of James’s and Alec’s best efforts, Q didn’t take very good care of himself so his immune system wasn’t the best. And James had just spent eighteen hours on an airplane, closed up with other people who might be sick.</p><p>On the other hand, if James had been infected, then MI6 was going to have to call a whole planeload of passengers to tell them about what had happened. Q did not relish the person who might be stuck with that job.</p><p>Within a few minutes, the door cracked opened and hazmat suits were slid in. James grabbed one and quickly slid it on, with an efficency that suggested he had done it before. Q made a mental note to pry that story out of him later as he awkwardly slipped into his suit. As soon as the helmet slipped over his head, he realized he didn’t like it. It felt very confining. His breath caught.</p><p>“Right this way, gentlemen.” Someone else in another suit opened the door fully now that James and Q were suitably attired. They were marched out of Q’s office, through the now empty Q-branch – and honestly, Q had never seen the branch completely empty – and through the halls to Medical, where they were directed into a small room with two beds. One of the walls was completely glass, and there were a few nurses and doctors standing there watching them.</p><p>Sweat instantly broke out across the back of Q’s neck. Most of those people would have no idea about his classification and Q was not at all eager to let them in on the secret. In fact, he was dreading the day that MI6 as a whole found out because he thought it was going to be a disaster.</p><p>How on earth was he going to hide when there was a literal window for them to be watched through?</p><p>The head of Medical, Dr. Grace Woods, came to the window. Q watched as she said something to the assembled nurses and doctors; all of them promptly departed, which was a relief. He didn’t like the feeling of being a proverbial fish in the fishbowl. Then Woods must have done something, pressed a button maybe, because suddenly her voice filtered clearly into the room.</p><p>“Good evening Agent Bond, Quartermaster. You can remove your suits now,” she told them. “Anyone who comes in to join you will be wearing a suit to avoid possible contagion, so there’s need for you to stay inside them.”</p><p>James instantly pulled off his helmet. “How long is this going to take?” he asked, clearly irritated.</p><p>“We’re running tests as we speak. In a few minutes, I’m going to have a few more samples taken from both of you. I plan to run Q’s tests myself,” she said with a meaningful look Q’s direction: as the head of Medical, she was aware of Q’s classification.</p><p>“Right. I need to use the loo,” Q said shortly, turning on his heel. He scanned the room quickly, noticing at least four different cameras at a glance. But, for privacy reasons, there were, of course, none inside the toilet. So he closed the door and leaned against it for a moment, closing his eyes.</p><p>Shit. <i>Shit</i>. What a mess this was going to be.</p><p>He pressed a hand to his eyes, rubbing at them quickly. Now wasn’t the time to cry. For the next god knew how many days, he was going to be watched pretty much all the time. He was going to have to draw upon every ounce of acting ability that he possessed to make it through this with his pride, and his secret, intact. </p><p>First things first. He quickly took off his trousers and removed the nappy underneath, stashing it deep in the garbage can. The nurses would probably think it was a little odd that their Quartermaster went commando, but they would find it even stranger if they knew he’d been wearing a nappy. He could invent an excuse, he thought: he could say he’d spilled his tea on himself or something like that if he had to.</p><p>He used the toilet, flushed, and washed his hands, glancing in the mirror. His reflection showed a sweaty, flushed man who didn’t look very happy. Q took his glasses off and splashed a bit of water on his face before drying himself off. Was his skin clammy? Was he hot to the touch? He couldn’t tell.</p><p>“Sir? I’m ready to take your sample now.” There was a gentle knock on the door.</p><p>Q braced himself, took a deep breath, and opened the door. “Of course.”</p><p>The nurse, a young man with red hair and a kind smile even through the helmet of the suit, held up a specimen bottle. “We can start by getting a sample of your urine.”</p><p>“Right,” Q said, realizing he probably shouldn’t have used the toilet. But when he closed the door and tried again, he found he was able to fill the specimen bottle about halfway. Hopefully that would be enough for whatever they wanted to do.</p><p>Next up were samples of his saliva and several vials of his blood. Luckily, Q had never been that bothered by needles. He sat silently on the bed while the nurse drew what they needed, then submitted to tests of his temperature and blood pressure. The nurse procured a tongue depressor and looked at Q’s throat, then shone a light in his eyes and ears.</p><p>“Right, thank you very much, Quartermaster. We’ll be back later for an EKG, and maybe some other tests depending on the results that we find,” he said cheerfully, and then left. The nurse who was collecting James’s samples wasn’t far behind, and then they were alone.</p><p>Well, sort of. Q was very conscious of the cameras that were watching them. He knew that they were there for safety reasons, but it also severely restricted what he and James could say to each other. Luckily, what Q wanted to say right now didn’t need to be kept private.</p><p>“I can’t believe you,” he said to James, letting anger seep into his voice. “Because you couldn’t wait two hours for Medical to run their tests and get their results, now I’m here too! And who knows how many other people you’ve potentially compromised!”</p><p>James winced. “Q, I’m sorry. I had no idea. I never would have come to see you if I’d known.”</p><p>Q kept glaring at him. “No more skipping Medical from now on for yu or any of the 00-agents. No matter how much you hate them, those examinations are an important part of your missions and there’s a reason that MI6 insists on them. I know that you 00-agents like to think you’re above all that, but I’ve <i>had it</i>,” he said in a voice that allowed for no arguments.</p><p>There was a significant pause before James nodded slowly. “You’re right.”</p><p>“Good.” Q turned away, folding his arms over his chest. His anger had drained away as quickly as it came, leaving him feeling small and sad and scared.</p><p>It was only another minute or two before the bed sank behind Q and James wrapped his arms around Q from behind. “It’ll be okay,” he whispered into Q’s ear.</p><p>“James, you shouldn’t…” Q mumbled, unwilling to move away from the warmth of that embrace, but also conscious of the fact that someone could be watching.</p><p>“It’s fine. We’ve got our cover story to fall back on, remember? Nothing wrong with a couple of partners comforting each other,” James said, and Q supposed that he was right. All of MI6 thought that he and James were dating each other while having the occasional threesome with Alec – that was the rumour mill for you. In light of that, it would probably look odder if he and James didn’t have physical contact in some way.</p><p>So he allowed himself to lean back into James again, resting the back of his head againt James’s shoulder. The view out their glass window wasn’t terribly interesting, but occasionally someone would walk by and give them something to look at. Q hoped that there was no one around because they were all working hard at developing their test results. He wanted nothing more than a clean bill of health so that he and James could go home.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Chapter 3</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Any hope that Q and James might not have to spend a night in Medical quickly died, and Q found himself sighing as he slid in between the coarse sheets on the bed. He didn’t think he would sleep much tonight, even though he was exhausted. He’d been looking forward to a night in his crib, or maybe cuddled up in bed with his daddy and uncle, not a night in Medical’s uncomfortable beds.</p><p>“Goodnight, Q,” James said softly from his bed.</p><p>“Goodnight,” Q said, sighing. He could tell that James felt bad about putting them in this situation, and honestly Q’s anger had faded. He was just tried now. Tired and frustrated. He didn’t want to be here anymore; he wanted to go <i>home</i>.</p><p>But that wasn’t to be, at least not tonight, so he took off his glasses and set them on the nightstand. Then he curled up in bed and tried not to think about how weirdly plasticky the pillow smelled or how annoying the overhead lights were – given the choice, he vastly preferred the softer lights of his mobile and comfortable bedding of his crib. It took a while, but eventually he did fall asleep.</p><p>There was just one thing he’d forgotten.</p><p>“Q, wake up,” James said in Q’s ear. Then arms slid underneath Q’s body and lifted him up. Q came awake already in the air, floundering and disoriented, and grabbed at James’s neck out of sheer fear that somehow James might drop him. </p><p>The next thing he knew, James was setting him down on top of the toilet. Q squinted up at him, confused; he couldn’t see much more than blurry shapes without his glasses. He didn’t really understand what was going on until he moved his leg and realized that his lower half was soaked. And then his heart sank straight through the floor.</p><p>He’d wet the bed.</p><p>“It’s okay,” James said quickly, before Q could do much more than draw in breath to speak. “It’s fine. I woke you up as soon as I knew what was happening.”</p><p>“It’s not fine! I wet the bed!” Q cried. He must have spoken too loudly because James shushed him. Q bit his lip and subsided, trying to blink back tears. His glasses were set on his nose a moment later, and he reached up to adjust them to the place that he liked. James’s concerned face came into perfect clarity, and the sight just made Q want to cry even more.</p><p>“It is. They’ll just chalk it up to the tests they’re running and the current situation. I saw Woods out there and she’s handling it,” James said. He was speaking calmly and authoritatively, which was what he always did when he was trying to maintain control of a situation that he couldn’t really control. </p><p>Q shook his head, jamming his fingers under his glasses to wipe at his eyes. He couldn’t believe he’d forgotten all about getting a nappy or a pull-up. But in the slew of tests that the doctors and nurses had been taking, it had slipped his mind. He’d been too concerned about those tests might reveal. And now he might have revealed his long-held secret instead…</p><p>“Hey, shh,” James soothed, stepping closer and wrapping his arms around Q. “They’re nurses, Q. They see that sort of thing all the time. Your reputation might take a bit of a hit, but no one is going to make the jump to the fact that MI6’s best Quartermaster ever is a Little.”</p><p>“They could see my blood tests,” Q said, hating how badly his voice quivered.</p><p>“Woods promised that she was personally taking care of them. I may not think much of Medical, but I do know that she takes privacy concerns very seriously. No one will know unless they’re deliberately looking, which I very much doubt considering how thoroughly Tanner vets all of Medical’s personnel. So, it’s okay.” James ran his fingers through Q’s hair, combing the sweat-dampened locks off of Q’s forehead.</p><p>“I should’ve put a nappy on,” Q mumbled.</p><p>James sighed. “I should have reminded you. I wasn’t even thinking about it.” He kept combing his fingers through Q’s hair. It was soothing, and Q could feel himself relaxing a little as the worst of the adrenaline eased.</p><p>“I don’t want to be here anymore,” Q said thickly. He wanted to go home.</p><p>“I know, baby, I know.” James’s hand left Q’s head for a moment. Q didn’t look up, but he heard the sound of water running. A moment later, James tilted his head back and started gently patting at Q’s face with a cold, damp towel, wiping away sweat and tears. Q had to admit, the towel felt nice.</p><p>He kept his eyes shut until the towel was removed and his glasses were settled back into his place. Then he opened his eyes. James was looking down at him with an expression that was part worry and part guilt. Q tried to smile, but he wasn’t sure that it worked very well when his lower half was still soaked. </p><p>“Let’s get you cleaned up,” James said. “Come here.” He held Q to stand up and had him remove his jeans. Then he quickly wiped Q off with another damp towel. Q would have vastly preferred a shower, but they didn’t have access to one. He wondered for the first time how long they were expected to stay in this room. Did Medical plan to move them at some point?</p><p>When Q was clean again, he sat back down on the toilet and pulled the hem of his shirt down around his thighs. He felt tired and sad and overwhelmed. Normally this was about the point where his daddy would make him a bottle of warm milk, or his uncle would scoop him up and start singing Russian lullabies into his ear while walking around until Q settled down. He suddenly, fiercely wanted to see Alec and looked up at James.</p><p>“Do you know if Alec made it home?” he asked.</p><p>“He did. He sent me a text about an hour before you woke up. He’d just crossed the border,” James said, finally giving a small smile. </p><p>“Does he know what happened?”</p><p>“Not yet. I figured it was best to wait until he got back to MI6. Otherwise, knowing Alec, he’ll freak out and try to take control of the plane to make the pilot get back here faster. And then Moneypenny will get pissed at me because she had to go bail a 00-agent out of jail for suspected terrorism.” James rolled his eyes, and Q couldn’t help a quiet giggle. That did sound like something that Alec would do. James looked down at him and his smile broadened into a grin.</p><p>But then there was a knock on the door; Q flinched and drew in on himself, hunching his shoulders and wishing very much that he could disappear. James set a calming hand on his shoulder.</p><p>“Who’s there?” he called out, and Q stood up. If there was someone else around, he wasn’t going to be seen as a flinching little kid on the toilet.</p><p>“Agent Bond, Quartermaster, it’s Dr Woods. I have a change of clothing out here for the Quartermaster,” Woods said. Q stepped back, pulling the hem of his shirt down around his thighs, and James opened the door a crack. Woods peered in at them, and, even through the helmet that she was wearing, her smile so unexpectedly sympathetic that Q had to swallow hard.</p><p>“Thank you,” James said, accepting the clothing.</p><p>“It’s no problem at all. I’m sorry, Quartermaster. I should have made sure you’d have access to all the necessary supplies here. It slipped my mind,” she said.</p><p>“It’s okay,” Q mumbled. Honestly, seeing nappies or pull-ups around would have just freaked him out even more. He would’ve immediately jumped to the conclusion that everyone knew they were there, and that everyone knew <i>why</i> they were there.</p><p>“You’ve dealt with everyone who knows, correct?” James asked.</p><p>“There isn’t anyone else who knows,” she said calmly. “I was working in my office and monitoring some tests when your alarm went off. I responded myself. The bed is already changed, and I’ve disposed of the sheets with the rest of the laundry. They’ll be washed tomorrow morning with everything else.”</p><p>Q breathed a little easier, hearing that. As much as he had hated the thought of even the head of Medical knowing about his classification, he could admit now that he was glad she did. He didn’t think he could’ve handled someone finding out tonight. And as embarrassing as it was to know that she had literally cleaned up his mess, at least he could be sure that Woods was professional enough to take it in stride. </p><p>“Our alarm?” James said, his eyes sharpening.</p><p>Woods nodded. “All of the medical rooms have an alarm at night for excessive movement. Oddly enough, it was installed after one too many 00-agents disappeared at night,” she said dryly, giving James a pointed look. To his credit, James somehow managed to look like he had no idea what she was talking about.</p><p>“Thank you,” Q said in a small voice. It was fair from the image he usually liked to display as MI6’s Quartermaster, but tonight he felt about as far from that as could be.</p><p>“It’s not a problem,” Woods said, her voice kind. “When you both come back out, I’ll take your temperature and your blood pressure. That way, if anyone notices my visit, they’ll assume it was a check. Take your time.” She passed the folded-up clothing to James and then turned away, allowing James to close the door.</p><p>James shook out the clothing so that they could see what Woods had brought. Q couldn’t help a sigh of relief when he realized that it was the jeans, shirt, and jumper he normally kept in his office as a spare for those days when he ended up having meetings first thing in the morning after working all night. He’d learned early on that a fresh set of clothing could go a long way towards making him look reputable.</p><p>Someone – like R or another Q-branch intern – must have retrieved them for him. He hoped that Woods had come up with some kind of explanation as to why Q needed them. Hell, he’d rather that all of Q-branch believed he’d thrown up all over himself than know that he’d wet the bed.</p><p>“She also brought you a nappy,” James said, unearthing a nappy from underneath the jeans. Q looked at the blank white nappy and sighed, thinking longingly of the package of nappies they had back at the flat that were patterned with blue stars and green comets. Somehow, having a pattern on the nappy made him feel a bit less like a baby when he wore one.</p><p>Or better yet, Q wished he had one of the pull-ups that he usually wore around the office. They were made of a thinner fabric than a nappy but were almost as absorbent. At first glance, they could pass for normal pants. But he’d run out a few days ago, which was why he’d been wearing a nappy in the first place, and he had yet to buy anymore. He cursed his forgetful nature. There were just so many things to remember!</p><p>Still, beggars couldn’t be choosers and all that. So, he stepped forward and clumsily put the nappy on. James clearly wanted to help but seemed to realize Q needed to do it himself. Once the nappy was on, Q pulled on the jeans, shirt, and jumper. He felt a little better once he was dressed. More pulled together, and less like a weepy Little who was one exhausted fit away from being put down with a bottle.</p><p>“Alright?” James asked, searching Q’s face.</p><p>Q nodded. “Alright,” he said, trying for a smile. He must have succeeded, because James gave him a tentative smile back and turned to wash his hands. Q’s smile faded the instant James’s back was turned. He wasn’t alright. He wanted to go <i>home</i>.</p>
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<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Chapter 4</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>When James opened the door and Q ventured out, he was relieved to see that Woods had gone. True to what she had said, his bed had fresh linen and the floor around it had been mopped. Q gingerly crossed the still-wet floor and picked up his mobile from the nightstand. It was later than he’d expected – or maybe he should say it was <i>earlier</i> than he’d expected, given that it was nearly 6am.</p><p>“You going to try to go back to sleep?” James asked, standing near his own bed. </p><p>Q shook his head. “No. I couldn’t sleep even if I tried.” Not with the remainder of adrenaline still fading from his system. He was pretty sure it would be a long time before he fell back asleep in Medical no matter how tired he was.</p><p>James nodded like he’d expected that and sat, picking up his own phone. He looked as tired as Q felt. It was pretty unlikely that James had slept at all last night, Q realized. Any MI6 agent would have a difficult time sleeping in a place they weren’t familiar with, but that went double when it came to the 00-agents. Add in the fact that all of James’s caregiver instincts would’ve been primed because Q was sick, and James probably wasn’t going to be sleeping anytime soon either. No wonder he’d reacted so quickly when he’d noticed Q wetting the bed.</p><p>But there was nothing Q could do about that for the time being, so he just sighed and turned his attention back to his phone. He checked his email and was dismayed to see that he’d got over four hundred new ones since he’d last checked. Some of them were spam that could be filtered out, but the vast majority required his attention in some way. He perched on the edge of his bed and started to type.</p><p>Working on his phone was maddening, though. By the time he’d worked his way through a dozen emails, he sorely missed his laptop. He was more skilled with a mobile than most, but there were some things that you just needed an actual computer for. Plus, when he was as tired as he was now, squinting down at the small screen of his phone usually just gave him a headache.</p><p>“We have a visitor,” James observed just as Q was opening email number fifteen, and Q looked up in surprise.</p><p>“My laptop!” he cried, leaping off the bed and rushing to the glass.</p><p>From the other side, Moneypenny grinned at him and waved. She set his laptop down and pressed the button to allow them to hear each other, saying, “I’d like to think that that reaction is because you missed me, but I’m not stupid enough for that.”</p><p>“If he could, he’d gladly push you out of the way to get to his laptop right now,” James said, not bothering to hide his amusement, and Moneypenny’s grin broadened.</p><p>“Of that, I have no doubt,” Moneypenny said, a teasing twinkle in her dark eyes. “I tried to bring it in last night, but Woods said that you both needed you rest. Somehow, she had the idea that our dear Quartermaster would stay up all night working if he had his laptop. Can you imagine where she got that idea from?”</p><p>“Not at all. Pure folly, that,” James said, shaking his head dramatically.</p><p>“Right?” Moneypenny said. </p><p>Q glared at the both of them. “I am not that bad,” he said indignantly.</p><p>They both laughed, and Moneypenny said, “Yes, you really are.” But she was smiling fondly as she moved Q’s laptop to the little slot through which things could be safely passed. She closed the container on her side, and, as soon as the green light went off on Q’s side, he wrenched the container open and grabbed his laptop. He hugged it to his chest, not even caring about the teasing.</p><p>“Thank you,” he said to her.</p><p>Her face softened. “You’re welcome, Q. I don’t know why Woods changed her mind, but I’m glad she did. I knew you had to be going crazy without something to distract you.”</p><p>“Oh, but you didn’t bring anything for me. So you don’t care if I go crazy?” James called out.</p><p>“Nope,” Moneypenny said, popping the ‘p’, and smirked. “But if you’re truly desperate, I believe that M told me you had a ton of overdue paperwork. I could probably bring that by…”</p><p>“I’ll manage,” James said, faking a shudder. </p><p>“Somehow, that’s what I thought you would say,” she said, shaking her head. “Now Q, just make sure that you don’t crazy on your laptop. I don’t want Woods getting mad at me because you buried yourself in your laptop for twelve hours without moving.”</p><p>“He’ll be fine,” said James. “I have ways of distracting him.” He winked at Moneypenny to add an obvious implication to his statement, even though it couldn’t have been further from the truth. His usual method of distraction involved a cute stuffed toy and a bottle of warm milk. Though in all fairness, Q couldn’t have either of those right now so James might have to be creative.</p><p>“I’ll bet you do. Just remember that you’re being recorded and that I really don’t want to have to deal with an irate M if certain footage of you two needs to be erased,” she said dryly.</p><p>“That’s not going to happen,” Q said, flushing at the very idea. He sat down on his bed, still clutching his laptop to his chest. He was so grateful to have it back that he would have hugged Moneypenny if he could have.</p><p>She and James kept on chatting for a while longer, but Q tuned out after their conversation came around to James’s last mission. He set his laptop on his knees and opened it. His email came up on screen and Q fought back the urge to groan when he saw that he’d received another fifty-three emails since last looking on his phone. He sighed to himself, got comfortable, and started.</p><p>At some point Moneypenny departed, and Q was peripherally aware of James turning on the television, but he didn’t really pay any attention to anything else until a nurse came by with some food. Or at least, she called it food. Q didn’t agree. He cast a disdainful look at the gloppy mush that Medical was trying to pass off as oatmeal and then huddled over his laptop.</p><p>“Q, you should try to eat something,” James said, though he didn’t seem overly pleased by the offering.</p><p>“I will when there’s actual food,” Q said. They hadn’t even given them water for tea. Normally he gave in when Alec and James nudged him on eating, but this was one hill he was prepared to die on.</p><p>James lifted up the one cover on the tray to reveal a sorry excuse for an apple. He looked at it for a moment before shaking his head and saying, “Yeah, okay, I’m willing to accept that just this once.”</p><p>“Good,” Q muttered, turning his attention back to his laptop and the situation that 004 had somehow found herself in. He didn’t look up again for a long time, not even when the bed sank as James joined him. </p><p>Then an arm came around his chest from behind, and James whispered in his ear, “We have another visitor you’re definitely going to want to see, but just remember that we’re being monitored at all times.”</p><p>Q blinked and looked up, expecting to see Moneypenny again or maybe Tanner or M. His eyes widened when he saw that their visitor was none other than 006. Alec Trevelyan was standing on the other side of the window, waving. His face lit up into a smile when he saw that he had Q’s attention.</p><p>Normally, this would be the moment where Q happily jumped up and threw himself into Alec’s arms for a hug. Alec was dramatic, so he would probably spin Q around two or three times until James chimed in telling Alec to knock it off before Q threw up. Since that had actually happened once before and Alec had been the one to deal with the mess, Alec would stop – but only to pepper kisses all over Q’s face until Q squirmed away, shrieking with laughter.</p><p>But James’s arm around his chest reminded him that none of that could happen, so Q’s excitement deflated as quickly as it had come. He hadn’t minded the glass separator when they were speaking to Moneypenny but seeing Alec on the other side was like a punch to the gut. </p><p>Alec must have pressed the button on the other side because a moment later his voice filtered into the room. “What’s this I hear about Jamesy infecting everyone?”</p><p>“I didn’t infect everyone,” James said, and Q knew without looking that James was rolling his eyes. “There was a minor incident on my mission that will probably turn out to be nothing. That’s all.”</p><p>“It better,” Alec said, and there was a bit of a glint in his eyes before it was washed away by a smile. “When I heard that you were stuck in Medical, I swung by the deli and brought you both some food.” He opened the compartment and leaned down, then put something inside.</p><p>James let go of Q so they could both get up and see what was inside. There was a bag of food and two take-away cups. Q was delighted to find that one of them contained tea with two sugars, just the way he liked it. He took a long sip and gave a happy sigh, then turned to say thank you. The words dried up in his throat when he saw that Alec was watching him with an expression that was equal parts affection, concern, and compassion.</p><p>“Are you okay?” Alec asked, so gently that Q had to blink back the tears that rushed to his eyes. He found that he couldn’t speak, or he was going to end up crying.</p><p>So, James stepped up behind him, laying a supportive hand on Q’s shoulder, and said, “We’re both about as well as can be expected. How did your mission go?”</p><p>Alec shrugged one shoulder, leaning against the glass. “It was alright. Nothing spectacular. Got what M wanted, saved a few lives in the process, left a trail of destruction behind me…” He grinned wickedly.</p><p>“Have you heard about how 004 is doing?” James said. Alec shook his head, looking intrigued, and the next thing Q knew the two of them were gossiping about the other 00-agents like a couple of old women at a coffee shop. Q shook his head in quiet amusement and leaned against James while sipping his tea.</p><p>When there was a lull in the conversation, and Q thought he could speak without crying, Q said, “Did you bring me back anything from the mission?”</p><p>“Ah, I was waiting for that,” Alec said with another grin. “I’ve already dropped off what I was able to find with R. She promised to send you everything she had within the hour.”</p><p>Q’s eyes lit up. “And just what were you able to find?” he asked eagerly. Out of all the 00-agents, James and Alec had the best grasp on what really interested Q. So it was always the two of them that brought back the best things for him to look at, poke apart, and play around with. </p><p>Alec winked at him. “Sorry, I don’t want to ruin the surprise. You’ll have to wait and see for yourself.”</p><p>Q pouted. “That’s not very nice.”</p><p>“Hey, I’m keeping you fed. I’d say I’m the nicest guy around,” Alec said, nodding to the bag they hadn’t touched yet. James opened it up and Q saw that Alec had brought them sandwiches, containers of soup, and some biscuits. </p><p>“At least we won’t starve,” James said, nodding his thanks.</p><p>“I have to go. I promised Woods I wouldn’t overstay my welcome, and if I piss her off, she won’t let me become back later,” Alec said apologetically, keeping his eyes trained on Q.</p><p>Instantly, Q started to feel emotional again. He didn’t want his uncle to go. He reached out, putting his hand against the glass. Alec sighed, looking pained, and put his hand out against the glass too. His hand was much bigger than Q’s, not like it mattered. With the glass there, it wasn’t like Q could feel him. They might as well have been on different planets.</p><p>“Bye,” Alec said softly. It was clear he wanted to say more but couldn’t. </p><p>“Goodbye,” James said for both of them. Alec smiled one last time before he turned and walked away.</p>
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<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Chapter 5</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>James tried to give him some of the food that Alec had brought, but Q just shook his head. He’d never been less hungry in his life. Besides, there was no time to eat anyway. No sooner had Alec departed than two nurses descended on them. Q submitted to the tests in silence, allowing them to take his blood pressure and check his heartrate, then take three vials of blood.</p><p>Once they were done, he went back to his laptop. As promised, R was uploading the data that Alec had brought back from his mission. Q lost himself in slowly scrolling through it, realizing that Alec had been in Russia. Most of the data was therefore not in English, and Russian was one of the languages Q didn’t speak. He’d need either Alec or one of MI6’s translators to go through it first.</p><p>“Q,” James said sometime later. It wasn’t a friendly voice, and Q’s head immediately snapped up to find that Woods was standing on the other side of the glass door. Instantly, Q’s heart sank. They had to be here for more tests. He dreaded the thought of having to go through all of that again.</p><p>But much to his surprise, instead of using the button to communicate, Woods opened the door and walked right in – even though she wasn’t wearing the necessary safety suit. Q stared at her in astonishment. She took one look at his face and chuckled.</p><p>“I didn’t forget, Quartermaster. Both of you are safe,” she said.</p><p>“Thank fuck,” James said, clasping a hand to his face.</p><p>Q slowly closed his laptop, hoping against hope that he wasn’t dreaming. “Are you sure?”</p><p>Woods nodded. “The virus has an incubation period of twelve hours. We gave you an extra few hours to be safe, but we just re-checked your blood and you’re both good to go. It seems, Agent 007, that once again you have had a brush with death and come out the other side with no harm. I’m not sure how you do it.” She gave a wry smile.</p><p>“Pure luck,” James said, jumping to his feet. “Come on Q, let’s get out of here and go –”</p><p>“I’m afraid that you, 007, are not going anywhere,” Woods said.</p><p>“What?” James said.</p><p>“Your luck has run out. M wants to have a word with you,” she said, and the satisfactory gleam in her eyes was rather unbefitting of a doctor. </p><p>James’s shoulders slumped. “Great.”</p><p>“On the other hand, you, Quartermaster, are free to go,” she added, looking at Q with a much friendlier smile. “I can have someone call you a taxi if you’d like to go home.”</p><p>“I’m good, thanks,” Q said, giving her a small smile in return. He wasn’t sure how he felt now. Relieved, of course, but also a little overwhelmed. There had never been any real danger, but for a little while there it had sure felt like there was.</p><p>“Very well. I’m sure you two can find your own way out.” She gave them one last smile and then left.</p><p>“Q?” James said quietly. “Are you okay?”</p><p>“I’m fine,” Q replied, gathering up his laptop. “You should go see M, James.”</p><p>“But –”</p><p>“You’ll get in more trouble if you don’t,” Q interrupted him, shooting James a stern look. “M is probably pissed off as it is. Don’t give him even more of a reason to come up with a creative punishment. I don’t think MI6 can handle having you confined to England for three months again.”</p><p>James smirked a bit at the memory of the last – and first – time that had happened, but it quickly faded. “I should see you home first.”</p><p>Q shot him a look. “I’m not a child. I can get home myself,” he said, voice clipped. There were, after all, still cameras in the room. “I’ll see you later.”</p><p>He left the room before James could argue further, quickly making his way through Medical and out into the rest of MI6. It was a relief to let the door to Medical swing shut behind him. He headed straight for Q-branch, where R and the rest were very pleased to see him. It was at least an hour before Q actually made it into his office; he shut the door behind him with a sigh and leaned against it for a moment. As much as he enjoyed his co-workers, they could be a lot to handle sometimes.</p><p>Still, he reflected, at least he wasn’t trapped in Medical anymore. He could sit down, check his emails in peace, maybe have a cup of tea… He smiled to himself and turned around.</p><p>Then yelped in shock.</p><p>“Your minions really love you,” Alec said from where he was casually reclining in Q’s desk chair.</p><p>“What the hell are you still doing here?” Q hissed, making sure to keep his voice down. Rumours abounded at MI6 about him, James, and Alec. Everyone knew that he and James were ‘dating’, but no one seemed to be entirely sure how Alec fit in. Q wanted to keep that way.</p><p>“Waiting for you,” Alec replied, seemingly undaunted by Q’s attitude.</p><p>“Waiting for – did you know that we were going to be released?” Q asked. </p><p>Alec shook his head. “No, but I was prepared to wait no matter how long it took.”</p><p>The simplicity of that statement took Q’s breath away. James and Alec could be annoyingly stubborn and frustrating sometimes, but then they would do or say something that was so <i>sweet</i> that Q didn’t even know what to do about it. As quickly as his anger had come, it fled. Q slumped back against the door, suddenly exhausted and on the verge of tears.</p><p>“Ah, Q.” Alec jumped up and closed the distance between them, pulling Q into such a big hug that Q’s feet left the floor. So, it made perfect sense to wind his legs around Alec’s waist, letting Alec support his full weight.</p><p>It felt <i>so good</i> to be hugged.</p><p>“Your daddy has been a real idiot,” Alec murmured into Q’s hair, pressing a kiss to the top of Q’s head. “Where is he? I fully expected to find him begging your forgiveness.”</p><p>“He’s with M, and I’m not mad at him,” Q mumbled into Alec’s shoulder. His laptop was digging into his sternum. Like he could sense that, Alec shifted Q’s weight to one arm and took Q’s laptop with his now free hand. He walked back to the desk and set the laptop down before using both arms to hug Q again.</p><p>“You can be mad at him if you want to. He did something that was really stupid,” Alec said, unexpectedly serious.</p><p>“I know,” Q said with a sigh. It had been stupid, but there was no point in getting mad at James. All agents dodged Medical. It was practically a rite of passage by this point. In this case, there just happened to be an unfortunate consequence that Q had got caught up in. </p><p>“I guess I can be mad at him for both of us,” Alec said. “Come on. Let’s get you home.”</p><p>Q thought about arguing, but quickly realized that he didn’t even want to. Exhaustion dragged at his bones, even more so than it had before he’d ended up in Medical. But as much as he wanted to lay his head on Alec’s shoulder and let Alec carry him out of MI6, he couldn’t do that for the sake of his reputation. He had to walk out of here on his own two feet. </p><p>“Alright,” he said, pulling back in time to see a worried look flash across Alec’s face – Alec always was the more expressive one between him and James. </p><p>But Alec said nothing, so Q didn’t ask. He just walked over to the corner and fetched his jacket, pulling it on and zipping it up. Alec opened the door and allowed Q to walk through first, then closed and locked the door behind them. R waved as they went. Q nodded back at her, knowing that she was more than capable of holding down the fort while they were gone and too tired to care about the fact that she’d clearly known Alec was in his office but hadn’t warned him.</p><p>Alec called a taxi while they made their way through MI6. By the time they’d passed through security, the car was waiting for them outside. Q crawled into the back of it and stared out the window as they drove home. The sky was grey and dull, suggesting rain. The damp chill in the air made Q shiver. He was relieved when the car dropped them off and he and Alec had climbed the stairs and were, at least, in their flat.</p><p>“Home at last,” Alec said, shutting the door behind them. “What do you want first? Food? A shower? World domination?” He grinned teasingly.</p><p>Q managed a smile. “Sleep?”</p><p>“No way,” Alec said, shaking his head. He looked Q up and down, then reached out and scooped Q up without even asking. Q had sort of been expecting it this time, so he just looped his legs around Alec’s waist again and let Alec do whatever he wanted.</p><p>It turned out that what Alec wanted first was to give Q a bath. In short order, Q was sitting naked in a few inches of warm water while Alec knelt beside the tub. Bath time was usually something that Q and James did together, but it wasn’t bad to have Alec’s gentle hands washing him instead. He felt himself beginning to relax, head lolling back against the tub. At the very least, it was nice to have the smell of Medical off him.</p><p>“That’s it. Just relax and let me do everything,” Alec whispered. He murmured something else in Russian – probably pet names, knowing Alec, though it also could have been the beginning of a fairy tale or more information about his most recent mission. With Alec, you could never know for sure. At one time, that had made Q feel a little uncertain. Now, it was comforting.</p><p>When the bath was finished, and Q’s hair had been washed and rinsed, Alec helped him out of the tub and got Q dried off quickly. In short order, Q had on a fresh nappy and a pair of pyjama bottoms and one of James’s long-sleeved shorts that threatened to slide off of Q’s shoulder. But it smelled a lot like James, and that was comforting to a Little who was beginning to miss his daddy.</p><p>“Shall I make soup?” Alec asked with a twinkle in his eye.</p><p>“Eww,” Q said, scrunching his nose.</p><p>Alec laughed. “My cooking isn’t that bad,” he protested, reaching out to lightly tweak Q’s nose.</p><p>“Yes, it is,” Q said, undaunted. Of the three of them, James was by far the best cook.</p><p>“You’re just uncultured,” Alec muttered, shaking his head. He held his arms out. “I can at least heat a can of soup on the stove. I can’t screw that up, right?”</p><p>Q pretended to think about it. “I guess not.”</p><p>“Your support is overwhelming. I’m so underappreciated,” Alec said with a dramatic smile and a teasing poke to Q’s ribs. Q squeaked and tried to pull away, but Alec’s fingers were too fast. Within seconds, he was giggling and trying to squirm away as Alec tickled him.</p><p>“Uncle Alec, stop!” he cried out finally, breathless from laughter.</p><p>Alec was laughing too. “Say I can cook! Say it!”</p><p>“No lies!” Q finally managed to twist away and scooted out of reach, gasping between the occasional giggle. It was one of the rules when he was Little: he wasn’t supposed to lie. Of course, that meant Alec and James weren’t allowed to talk about work. Surprisingly, they were both good about following that.</p><p>“I’m offended, but I’ll survive. Come on. Soup time.” Alec crooked a finger at him.</p><p>Q narrowed his eyes suspiciously and protectively wrapped his arms around his ribs. Alec grinned. </p><p>“I promise to behave,” he said, which Q didn’t trust at all – but he was also hungry, so he took his uncle’s hand and allowed Alec to lead him back to the kitchen.</p>
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<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Chapter 6</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Q was <i>not</i> asleep on the sofa, no matter what Alec said, when James finally came home. He was just resting with his eyes shut. The sound of the door opening and closing did get Q to open one eye just to see who it was, but when he registered that it was just James, he let his eyes slip shut again. He was expecting James to come over to him, but instead James slid his shoes off and bypassed the sofa to go into the kitchen. </p><p>“On a scale of one to ten, how mad at me are you?” James said, his voice a little distant now, and Q perked up enough to listen closely. </p><p>“Probably about a fifteen,” Alec replied, though his voice was pleasant enough. That didn’t necessarily mean anything, Q knew. Alec was one of those people who could smile even when he was truly pissed off. It was one of many reasons why he and James were both considered the scariest 00-agents.</p><p>“That’s below what I expected,” James said.</p><p>“Only because Q came out of this okay. If he’d got sick, you’d have a few new bullet holes,” said Alec.</p><p>James sighed. “I know. I’d deserve it. I can’t believe I put him in danger like that.”</p><p>“Why did you?”</p><p>“Because I’m stupid?”</p><p>“James.” Just by that tone, Q knew that Alec was giving James a <i>look</i>.</p><p>“What do you want me to say? I just – when I got back, I knew Q wouldn’t have been looking after himself since you were gone too. All I could think about was getting to him and making sure that he was okay. It never even dawned on me that I’d be putting him in danger. I feel terrible.”</p><p>Q frowned to himself, opening his eyes a little bit to look up at the ceiling. He hadn’t thought about it like that before, but James had a point. Ever since he’d opened himself up to letting James and Alec take care of him, Q had got even worse at taking care of himself. It was like the little switch inside his brain that would force him to do so had been permanently switched off because other people were sometimes able to do it for him.</p><p>That wasn’t right. Most of the blame was still on James for skipping out on Medical, but Q could admit that a little blame was on him too. He was putting undue stress on James and Alec by making them worry about him. He had never realized just how <i>much</i> they worried about him when they weren’t here, though in retrospect that should have been obvious given how much they fussed over him when they were here.</p><p>He was going to have to get better about it, he decided. From now on, no matter how busy things were at MI6, he was going to have to take better care of himself when James and Alec were away. He’d have to set reminders on his phone for things like eating and sleep, and actually make sure he followed those reminders when they popped up instead of dismissing them.</p><p>If James and Alec could be sure Q was taking better care of himself, they wouldn’t need to be as concerned about rushing to get to him the moment they landed.</p><p>“Besides,” James added, drawing Q’s attention back to them. “I thought this time would be just like every other time we’ve skipped out on Medical.”</p><p>“Yeah. We should probably stop doing that,” Alec said.</p><p>“Q’s already made that clear,” James said. “Do you think he’s mad at me?”</p><p>“Who, Q? No. You know he’s got a soft heart. What did M say?”</p><p>“He was pissed, but that’s nothing new. Read me the riot act and said that I was benched for the next three weeks.”</p><p>“So, business as usual,” Alec said. Q heard the sound of two beers being popped open. James typically favoured whiskey or harder liquors over beer, but sometimes he’d have one of Alec’s beers. The slide of a glass bottle against the wooden table suggested that he was having one tonight.</p><p>“Pretty much. Told me that the next time I threatened the Quartermaster’s life, I’d be in for a much harder time. If only he knew. No one could make me feel worse than I do right now.” James sighed again. “I don’t know how to fix this.”</p><p>Q’s frown deepened and he sat up, adjusting his glasses. He kept the blanket around his shoulders as he got up and made his way to the doorway of the kitchen. Both James and Alec looked over at him. It was hard to tell if they’d known that he was listening – they probably had. Certainly, neither one of them seemed surprised to see him standing there. But that was what happened when you had a couple of super spies for caregivers.</p><p>“You don’t need to fix anything. I forgive you,” Q told James.</p><p>“Q – ” James began, but Q was already shaking his head.</p><p>“No, don’t. The only thing you have to do is promise me that from now on, you’ll follow the return protocols that Medical has set out no matter how annoying you find them,” Q said firmly. “<i>Both</i> of you.” He included Alec in his pointed stare. “Because while it just so happened to be James this time, it could have just as easily been you, Alec. You’re just as bad as him.”</p><p>There was nothing that Alec could say to refute that, because Q was right, and they all knew it.</p><p>“It was a mistake. One that I’m sure will not be repeated moving forward,” Q went on. “In the end no one was hurt, and we all got to walk away with a lesson learned. So I want all this stop. James, no beating yourself up. And Alec, no rubbing it in. Do I make myself clear?” He eyed the two of them with his best no-nonsense look, which had been perfected on enough recalcitrant Q-branch minions to be effective even on a couple of 00-agents.</p><p>“Yes,” Alec said, looking just the tiniest bit ashamed.</p><p>James slowly nodded and set his beer bottle down, opening his arms up. “Come here, Q.”</p><p>Q refrained for just a moment, looking between the two of them, before he gave in. He walked over to James and let James pull him down onto his lap. Q gratefully cuddled in, resting his head on James’s shoulder and looping his arms around James’s neck – at least until he caught a whiff of the distinct medicinal scent that was clinging to James’s hair and clothing. Then he recoiled, making a face.</p><p>Alec started to laugh. “I think that’s a sign you need a shower, Jamsey.”</p><p>“I didn’t get a chance yet. M kept me for a while,” James said. He pressed a kiss to the side of Q’s head and stood up, easily bringing Q with him. He passed Q over to Alec and disappeared down the hallway.</p><p>“You’re too forgiving,” Alec said, resting his chin on top of Q’s head.</p><p>Q snorted. “You two should be damned grateful for that,” he muttered in amusement. </p><p>“We’re always grateful for you,” Alec said softly, hugging Q tightly. “What do you say we move to the sofa? It’ll be a lot more comfortable than the kitchen chair.”</p><p>“Okay,” Q said quickly, though he made no move to get off Alec’s lap. Alec sighed but smiled and stood up with Q in his arms. He carried Q back through the door and over to the sofa, where he dropped down onto the sofa and pulled the blanket over the both of them.</p><p>“I am so tired,” he said, putting his feet up on the coffee table. “I could sleep for two days straight.”</p><p>“Tell me more about your mission,” Q urged.</p><p>“That’s hardly appropriate conversation for you when you’re so close to your headspace,” Alec replied, combing his fingers through Q’s hair. Q made a face at that but had to admit that Alec was right. He wanted to hear more details, but chances were he wasn’t going to remember much of it anyway. He was too tired for that.</p><p>“Fine, but I want all the details as soon as I’m out the other side,” Q grumbled, sneaking a hand up under his glasses to rub at his eyes. </p><p>“Of course,” Alec said. He grabbed the remote with his free hand and turned the television on, quickly finding some silly talk show – Alec was a huge fan of those shows where he got to make fun of the people who were dumb enough to go on them. The fact that all those shows were clearly scripted didn’t seem to make much difference to him. </p><p>By the time James joined them, Alec had thoroughly mocked a man who had got four different women pregnant. James sat down on the other side of Q, eyeing the television with a disapproving look. Q slid out from under Alec’s arm and leaned into James, delighted when James held up a bottle. It was mostly full of a pale brownish liquid. Q immediately opened his mouth.</p><p>The brownish liquid proved to be a meal replacement that tasted like chocolate milk. Q happily sucked it down, head resting on James’s shoulder while James held the bottle for him. He hadn’t even noticed how hungry he was until the liquid hit his stomach, but then again, he couldn’t really remember the last time that he’d eaten anything more than a mouthful or two.</p><p>“Seriously, Alec?” James said, exasperated. “Isn’t there anything better on?”</p><p>“You can’t ask me to change it now! I need to know if he fathered the fourth baby!” Alec argued back.</p><p>“He clearly did. The baby has the exact same eyes as that idiot,” James said. He removed the nipple from Q’s mouth, the bottle now empty, and gently but firmly patted Q’s back a few times until Q burped.</p><p>“Ah, but that’s where they get you. There’s always another family member they don’t mention until after the break,” Alec said triumphantly, gesturing to the television. “I bet you ten quid she slept with his cousin.”</p><p>James sighed. “I am not taking that bet.”</p><p>“Afraid, Jamsey?” Alec asked, voice teasing, and James reached around Q to slap Alec upside the head. Alec merely cackled in response.</p><p>Q shook his head at the two of them and reached over to tug on Alec’s sleeve. “Uncle Alec, I want my kitty.”</p><p>“Ah, but I’m comfortable,” Alec whined. </p><p>Q just looked up at him with the best set of puppy eyes that he could muster. It took approximately two seconds for Alec to crack; with a sigh and a groan, Alec pushed himself up off the sofa and ambled off to the bedroom. James chuckled to himself and gently ruffled Q’s hair.</p><p>“It’s a good thing MI6 doesn’t know how cute you are when you do that. You’d be considered a lethal weapon,” he murmured.</p><p>“Not really. Pretty sure it only works on you and Alec,” Q said through a yawn. Now that his belly was full, and both James and Alec were here, he was beginning to get tired again. He curled up closer to James, snuggling up under the blanket. </p><p>“That’s what you think,” James muttered. </p><p>Alec returned carrying Q’s favourite stuffed toy and handed it over to Q before he crawled back under the blanket. He leaned against Q and turned the volume on the television up a bit. Q yawned again and rested his head against James’s shoulder, watching through half-lidded eyes as the results of the D.N.A. test were read. Alec crowed with triumph when the girl admitted to sleeping with a stepbrother.</p><p>“Not a cousin, but close enough. You owe me ten quid,” Alec said.</p><p>“I deliberately did <i>not</i> take that bet,” James argued.</p><p>Q smiled to himself and closed his eyes, letting the sound of their squabbling lull him to sleep. It was almost better than a lullaby in a way, if only because it was such a familiar sound. At some point, someone – probably James – gently lifted his glasses off his nose. That meant he was able to cuddle in even closer to his daddy, and after that everything just faded away.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Find me on <a href="https://tsuki-chibi.tumblr.com/">tumblr</a>.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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